General Cycling DiscussionHave a cycling related question or comment that doesn't fit in one of the other specialty forums? Drop on in and post in here! When possible, please select the forum above that most fits your post!

"I had this dream that I was driving down the freeway and slamming into everyone, just slamming into them. From side to side, right to left, all the way down the freeway. Not hurting anyone though, just knocking the phones out of their hands." -Laura Kightlinger

I can think of a few other things I'd like to do to the drivers on cell phones who almost wipe me out on my daily commute. I'm not sure those are totally appropriate for a public forum such as this one though.

Car Talk is a syndicated radio show aired on NPR stations, hosted by two "mechanic" brothers, Tom & Ray. They advocate a campaign called "Drive Now, Talk Later" :

In light of your "Drive Now, Talk Later" campaign, my friends have encouraged me to tell you what happened to me on my way home from work a couple of Fridays ago:

I was approaching an equipment rental business in my aging Dodge minivan when a man who was talking on his cell phone (and pulling a small trailer with a ditch witch on board) pulled out of the rental store parking lot right in front of me. I slammed on the brakes and managed to get the Caravan stopped. Annoyed, I slammed my hand down on the horn and held it for a good while as he continued his LEFT TURN ACROSS A BUSY STREET! When I blew my horn, he attempted to lift the middle finger of his left hand (the hand holding the cell phone while propped up in the open window of his Blazer) toward me, and in so doing lost control of the phone, which flew out his open window directly toward me.

Wait, it gets better! The phone flew a short distance, bounced and came to rest just in front of me. As I rolled forward, I heard the phone crunch under the left front, then the left rear tire of my van (a feat I couldn't duplicate in a hundred tries!). As I continued, I glanced in my rearview mirror and saw the remains of his cell phone in a small pile of high-tech particles on the street. I can only hope the driver of the Blazer attempted to retrieve his phone. Moral of the story: There is justice in the universe for those who talk on the cell phone while driving! Give 'em "what for," guys!